My favorite books of the year

and one sentence to convince you to read them

I did my best to avoid the siren song of Black Friday/Cyber Monday, but I’m far from done spending money on books this year, and I can’t resist the opportunity to entice you into doing the same at your local bookstore or on Bookshop.org, a bookselling platform not named Amazon that’s raised more than $30 million for independent bookstores.

Here are a couple standouts from 2024 that I’ve personally vetted to be worth your time and money.

The Good

Great Expectations by Vinson Cunningham

David is a college dropout sharing custody of his unplanned child when he gets an opportunity to work on the presidential campaign of a certain senator from Illinois.

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Big Swiss by Jen Beagin

Greta spends her days transcribing the sessions of a sex therapist, and it was never difficult for her to keep a professional distance from these people until she became infatuated with Big Swiss, a married woman who’s a bit repressed and can’t help wondering how Greta understands her so well before they’ve even really met.

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The Great

Good Material by Dolly Alderton

Technically published at the end of 2023, I read it on vacation this year and loved the story of this comedian getting over a breakup while all of his other friends pair off.

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All Fours by Miranda July

An artist embarks on a cross-country road trip and only gets about an hour away from home before she begins an affair with a younger man who works as a rental car clerk.

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Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar

Recently sober and adrift after the loss of his parents, Cyrus Shams finds himself drawn to an artist planning to live out her last days in a museum, taking visits from anyone who wishes to visit her, and answering questions about the past and future.

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My favorite

Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

I couldn’t put down this book about a twenty-year-old single mom who turns to OnlyFans to pay rent and finds unlikely support and inspiration from her former pro wrestler father, Dr. Jinx.

📚 Bookshop